Gretel and Hansel
by CastrumOceanus
Summary: Gretel and Hansel have been followed by misfortune wherever they go after their mother died. Father gone, the step-mother a tyrant, and them, accused of heresy for aiding a witch. Forced to flee as fugitives, they encounter beasts and spirits of all kinds and discover dark family secrets that allude to the true meaning of their heritage. But will they live to see the truth?
1. Chapter 1: Setting the Stage

**So what's up buttercups? Thanks for clicking by the way ;D**

**It's my first fic so try not to be too angry with me. Constructive criticism only please because I don't think that flaming people will encourage them to write better. **

**This was inspired by lots of things, of course the story is somewhat similar to Grimms' Hansel and Gretel but there a couple of events that I are a pretty different from the original story (If it was the same than there would be on point to writing this anyway). Hope you enjoy the story.**

**Rating may go up due to some adult themes and violence.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Grimm's brothers' Hansel and Gretel.**

* * *

_Prologue_

"_What are you doing?!"_

"_Leaving! I'm fed up with you!"_

"_Leave?! You can't just leave us! We're your family!_

"_I have a new family now! One that needs me!"_

"_That man will ruin you!"_

"_He can't ruin me any more than you have!"_

"_Ariel, please, sister, don't leave…you'll die…"_

_Ariel looked upon her precious younger sister. Her blue eyes were shining with tears, silently pleading for her to stay. Ariel faltered, she felt guilty, but only for a moment. Her mind was set. _

"_It's too late…I've already given myself to him…" _

"_No….no no NO NO NO!" and her sister began to cry. She clung onto Ariel, as if she would disappear at any moment. Ariel gently pried her sister off herself and walked towards the exit. _

_The doors slammed in front of her. Ariel looked back and saw her father glaring coldly back at her. _

"_You will never see that man again. From now on you are forbidden from leaving the house."_

"_I will do what I want!" she snarled back and attempted to open the door, chanting various spells under her breath. _

"_Did you not __**hear**__ me girl?! YOU WILL NOT LEAVE THIS PLACE! EVER!" her father, with a wave of his hand, summoned a golem. It was twice the size of Ariel, and it was covered in a strange brown slime that reeked of death. It let out a guttural roar that seemed to shake the entire house. She stood her ground as it charged at her, still muttering the spells under her breath. She heard a faint click from behind and she smiled to herself. She looked directly at the charging beast and raised her arm, and a large sword appeared in front of her. She slashed her arm down vertically, and likewise the sword slashed down on the golem and split the beast in half. _

"_Goodbye." And like that, she threw the doors open and disappeared._

_Ariel knew she was being followed. Perhaps the golem…? She stopped in one of the forest clearings, set down her trunk and sat down, waiting for her pursuer to appear. She conjured for herself a long dagger, tensing as she heard footsteps. They were light; if she had lost been a normal human, she would not have heard them at all. How strange, she was sure golems would not be able to move that quickly or that quietly either. _

_Instead of the lumbering golem, she saw her little sister come into view. _

"_What are you doing here?" Ariel said, "you'll freeze out here."_

"_I think that applies more to you."_

"_Go home. Father will be furious if he sees you're meeting with me…in fact I'm surprised you caught up to me," Ariel smiled at her, "seems like you've grown up without me knowing." She opened her arms and embraced her younger sibling. _

_Her sister pushed her away, and passed a small golden locket over to her. _

_"I couldn't let you leave without giving you a proper goodbye._ _Don't forget me, Ariel…"she said and began to back away, "you should go before Father finds you…"_

_Ariel clutched the locket to her chest, "I won't ever forget you Emmy…I promise."_

_And with one last embrace, Ariel left and never looked back. If she had she might have seen the dark smile that passed 'Emmy's' face. _

_She finally stopped at the edge of a beaten forest road, the lights of the town twinkling in the distance. '_So close to home.'_ Her heart felt as if it would leap out of her chest from joy and worry. Her father would not let her go so easily...She opened her pocket watch for needed to remember why it was all worth it. Inside was a picture of a handsome young man, arms wrapped around a beautiful young woman. They were both leaning over a crib, watching the two lovely children sleeping peacefully inside. They were twins. _

Ch. 1: Setting the Stage

Gretel and Hansel were twins; both had beautiful blonde hair and beguiling violet eyes. Their features seemed to come mainly from their deceased mother, which could be the reason for the estrangement between the twins and the Woman.

Although isolated from many children their age, Gretel and Hansel lived in happiness in a family of well-off merchants. Their father, Joseph, came from a very wealthy family and the children wanted for nothing and lived in contentment. Their mother was very beautiful and kind, but she was also very fragile. She eventually died of illness during a particularly harsh winter when the twins were only at the tender age of 7.

Eventually, the twins' father remarried another woman, who was just as beautiful as his former wife. At first, she was very kind to the children and was just as gentle as their deceased mother. After the marriage, the woman dropped the facade and revealed her cruel and ruthless nature. Once she had their father wrapped around her little finger, she quickly took control. She was cunning, amassing more wealth than their father had made in years. The family quickly gained a higher status and eventually joined the aristocratic side of society.

Unfortunately, Gretel and Hansel fell quickly into servitude. The Woman had already bred her own heir, (the boy was around their age so he couldn't be born when Joseph re-married) they were no longer necessary. Besides, what kind of woman, or man for the matter, would want an abrasive little girl and an imbecilic boy for an heir? They lost all their nice clothes and all the little luxuries they enjoyed were treated roughly, forced to do menial labor at only 8. They were whipped personally by the Woman for any mistake in their work and were left with many scars upon their backs. They were treated less than most servants and were given very little to eat. They were pitied by most, but none dared to show any sympathy with the Woman watching. Any showing kindness to the two were severely punished, rumors say that someone was even murdered for helping the poor children. The Woman hated these two, why they deserved such hate no one really knew, but few wanted to risk her wrath by asking.

The family lived in the well-off town of Adelaide, and while it wasn't the largest town, it was a well-known traveling rest stop, with many people, from peasants to nobles, passing through. Now, the Woman was frighteningly ambitious, she wanted power and to do that, she had to gain the favor of the higher nobility. What better way to do it, than to "persuade" all the passing nobles of the king's court? She also stayed for long periods of time in the king's city, Sybaris, in trying to build up this influence and would leave the manor for a small estate in the capital. Her efforts managed to help the Woman become a minor noble of the royal court after several years, she was slowly taking power bit by bit, at this rate, it would not be long before she became a part of the elite of the royal court.

Each time the Woman left for the capital, Gretel and Hansel silently rejoiced, for the overseer she left behind was a much fairer, kinder host of the manor (or that's how they saw it because the Woman tended to make everyday living their own personal hell). They were spared from the Woman's vicious beatings and were sometimes given a little more food than before. And although the Woman spoiled her son, Kester, he managed to become a very decent fellow and from a stroke of either luck or misfortune, befriended the poor twins.

_Flashback_

"_Please young master! Your mother will be very upset if she finds you skiving from your lessons!" _

"_Those idiots have nothing to teach me. The fools can't even use an abacus correctly."_

"_Please, oh please, Master Kester! If you do not attend the lessons your mother will be horribly angry!" the poor maid begged and the other servants added their voices to the pleading. _

'Idiots, can't you see that I **can't** get down?' _but Kester was much too proud to admit that aloud. In an act of desperation, he climbed out the window to escape Albert, the head butler, who was threatening Kester he would break down the door and drag Kester kicking and screaming to his tutors if he had to. __He couldn't backtrack to his room now because his entrance branch broke under his weight and he nearly fell but managed to fall into the lower branches, unhurt but stranded. _Kester hated his tutors. Sure, they were clever, but excessively arrogant. They smiled condescendingly at him, so sure of their absolute wisdom, but when Kester showed himself to be a genius in each subject, they made sure to scorn said intelligence at every possible opportunity. 

_Kester clenched his fists, those old bats were probably laughing at his stupidity in the library. He himself was inwardly berating himself for such reckless action. He, of all people, should know better that impulsive action only leads to regret. _

"_Oh young master!" speak of the devil, one of the old coots was approaching, "do be a dear little boy and come down now!"_

"_You know we've taught you better than this," another one shook his head, "don't you know that you're causing trouble for everyone else? Come down now, you have many more lessons to attend to."_

"_Dear boy, do you need our help?" another said in a patronizing tone, "come now, don't be so stubborn and ask for help and we'll go and get a ladder for you."_

"_You see? This is why we're here, to teach you how to be a proper young man. Listen to your elders boy and come down now."_

_Kester snorted, "The only reason __**you're **__here is for the free food. And watch your tongue, you would do well to know you're place as my servant, you are beneath me."_

_Most flushed in embarrassment at the jab, but one managed to give Kester only another cold smile. _

"_Oh well then," he said, and began walking back to the manor," if you truly wish to stay up there, who are we to stand in your way?" He then turned to the servants, "Go back to the mansion, if the boy refuses our help then let him stay there till our mistress returns."_

_The servants gaped at the man; he couldn't be serious about leaving the young master there! But his colleagues shrugged their shoulders and walked back to the manor. The servants were at a loss as to what to do. The tutors were technically their superiors, but the young master __**was **__their charge. And yet the young master continued to refuse their efforts to help him. _

_Eventually, the mistress did return. Albert retold the events. She took one look at her son and said, "Leave him there."_

_And after that, no servant even looked at the tree the poor boy was stuck in. His pride would not let him call for help and he knew there would be no chance of getting down without his mother's permission anyway. It was awfully hot, and dreadfully boring. Why didn't he at least bring a book to read with him? He sat there picking at the trees' leaves, bored out of his wits and unbearably hungry because he had missed lunch. _

_While pulling at that the leaves on the tree, he saw someone walking towards him. A boy, around his age (9-years-old) with blonde hair and violet eyes, came up to the tree and looked up at him. He looked like the son of noble, he had such delicate features that no servant could possibly possess, but he wore such old, dirty rags that he wondered if he was simply a noble's bastard son and started working recently at the manor. Besides, Kester was sure he would have noticed a servant his age waltzing around the halls. _

"_You shouldn't bother them," the boy said._

"_Pardon?" Kester looked at the boy, "bother who?" _

"_The leaves, their Ghillie Dhu's friends. He doesn't like it when someone bothers his friends."_

_Kester stared at the boy for a little while, perhaps there was a reason he was placed as a servant and not a member of some noble's family. _

"_Oh..er…okay then, I'll stop," odd or not, it wouldn't do to be rude to the only potential entertainment he could have._

_The boy nodded and looked like he was going to walk away._

"_WAIT!" Kester called out, the boy stopped and turned to face him, "what's your name?"_

_The boy stared at Kester for a minute, the intense scrutiny was making Kester fidgety, but he told himself to stare back. It wouldn't do to show weakness in looking away. _

"_Hansel," the boy said at last, giving him a bright smile and turned away. _

_It was a shame he couldn't stay longer. While he had been initially put-out by the fact that Hansel was a little odd in the head, the conversation was a refreshing break from the monotony of being stuck in a tree. _

_A few minutes later, Hansel returned with a girl tow. They were obviously twins. The girl came closer, a small bundle under her arm. She motioned for Hansel to sit down and she began to climb the tree. He leaned forward, "Why are you climbing? This tree is too hard to climb for a little girl like you. Go back to the servants' and sew with the other women."_

_She looked up and snorted at him. A girl! The girl had the nerve to snort at him! Women, for the most part (his mother was an exception), were meant to do dainty things, like cook and clean and teach and drink tea. Pulling up their skirts and climbing trees with little bundles in their mouths was NOT dainty. _

"_Didn't you hear me? Go away!" he said a little louder this time in the best authoritative voice he could muster, "this isn't a place for girls!"_

_The girl just continued to climb up the tree, before he knew it; she was at the top where he was. He moved over for her. It'd be rude to leave her hanging in the air like that. She pulled herself up to him and he truly began to take in her features. She was prettier than any girl he had every met, those eyes were deep purple amethysts; her flaxen hair looked smooth and shiny. And yet, she wore such drab clothing, her arms and face smothered with dirt and grime. He realized he was ogling her for a good minute and turned away, blushing. _

_She turned to him and put the small bundle she had carried with her in his lap. The bundle she carried with her __**in her mouth**__. She looked at him, obviously waiting for him to open it. He grudgingly undid the knot, careful to avoid the slightly damp areas where she clamped her teeth down to hold the package. _

_Inside was a loaf of bread. How did Hansel know he was hungry? Did he see the whole mess earlier today? Simply thinking of the botched escape attempt made him flush in embarrassment. And he flushed even more when he realized that __**a girl**__ managed to climb the tree without much trouble whereas he only managed to get here by climbing out his bedroom window. _

_He looked at the girl, pretty as she was, she was still too thin for her age and he realized this might have been her food. "I don't need your help, I'm not hungry anyway," and he gave the loaf back to the girl. _

_She took the loaf and then smacked him upside the head with it. _

"_What the-" but he was cut-off by the piece of bread she had shoved in his mouth. She put the bread in his hands and took out a rope seemingly out of nowhere. She quickly tied the rope to the branch they were sitting on and climbed down. Hansel in the meanwhile, was dancing around the tree in a rather odd manner. Swaying his arms and jumping around the tree chanting what sounded like gibberish. Kester caught the name 'Ghillie Dhu' again in his chant. He looked up at Kester, "Do you want to dance with me?" But before Kester could reply, the girl took Hansel by the arm, interrupting his odd tree dance, and dragged him back to the house. _

_Kester watched them go. Why were they doing this? Surely they would be punished if they were caught?_

_Well, Kester would make sure they wouldn't be caught. His ego was bruised at the fact that he had been saved by a girl, but she did help him and he would make sure to return the favor. He quickly devoured the loaf and began to think. He couldn't leave the rope there because it would be obvious he had had help getting down, which could possibly get the two into trouble. _

'Well, looks like I'm going to have to do this the hard way'_ Kester thought to himself and he pushed his glasses up on his face and rubbed his hands together. He carefully undid the girl's knot and pulled up the rope. He made a little noose at the end and turned himself towards his bedroom window. There was a hook on top of his window. Traditionally, each room with a window had a hook hanging that had special charms made to drive away malevolent spirits. Even the poorest peasant had one that they kept on their person at all times._

_He slowly swung the rope in a circle, gathering speed, and threw the noose end at the hook. _

_He missed. _

_And missed._

_And missed._

_After the 7__th__ try, he managed to get a firm hold on the hook. He breathed in deeply. The hook was strong enough to hold his weight for probably a minute, perfectly enough time to get down or fall without breaking anything. It would be simple. Hypothetically of course. He swung himself off the branch and swung into the wall, for a moment he saw nothing but stars. He managed to pull himself together long enough to get closer to the ground and fell flat on his back. _

_The hook, unable to hold the weight any longer, fell and nearly impaled itself on his head had he not rolled over. Ignoring the fact that he had just avoided a rather gruesome death, he quickly coiled the rope around the hook and picked them up. _'Why do they make these things so heavy?'_ he groaned to himself as he dragged the hook and rope across the lawn and into the house. Let it be known that Kester was not the most athletic boy in town. He quickly and quietly ran to his room, hoping no one would see him before he could hide the evidence. He could easily fix the hook, being the genius that he was. He threw the coiled rope and the hook under his bed and sighed. He wondered if he would see those twins again. _

_A few days later, Kester would find the two hidden in a nondescript toolshed outside the servants' quarters. He was hoping to find some tools to fix the hook without attracting attention, but instead found the two children he was wishing to see. Unfortunately, they seemed to be nursing a few wounds from a recent beating received from the Woman. Maybe she found out about their coming to Kester's aid, or maybe she felt something was off, or maybe had done something else wrong. All the same, they were beaten and the two were trying to treat their bruises and cuts as best as they could. _

_Kester ran back to the house, and stole some fresh bandages and medicines for the two. He tried to treat them but the girl held her brother back. _

"_What do you want from us?" she inquired coldly, her voice was surprisingly harsh, _

"_Nothing! I'm returning a favor," Kester snapped back, "now if you want to get those cuts infected and get sick I suggest you stuff it and let me treat you."_

_She complied, but continued to glare at him the entire time. Hansel on the other hand, smiled and thanked Kester and asked if he had seen 'Ghillie Dhu,' whoever that was. Afterwards, Kester made to leave but was stopped by Hansel. _

"_Happy birthday," he said, and placed a large maple leaf in his hand. _

_Kester blinked, how did Hansel know it was his birthday today? He was even more surprised when the girl began to walk towards him and placed (a little reluctantly) a pretty summer rose in his hand. He had never received birthday presents like these before, all of them had been much more luxurious and expensive, but these managed to fill him with odd warmth that he had never felt before. He smiled at them in appreciation. Hansel smiled widely back. The girl simply scoffed and turned away from him. Hansel had probably forced her to give it to him. _

"_I'm Kester," he blurted out, "will I be able to meet you two again?"_

_Hansel looked at Gretel. She seemed to think about it for a little. Would it be alright to be acquainted with the Woman's son? He could get them into trouble. He was annoying and obviously a liability. Who wasn't to say that he wouldn't say something that would get them into trouble again someday? But Hansel seemed so happy to have made a friend, his eyes searched for approval and she knew she couldn't say no to him. She sighed. _

"_Come when the Woman isn't here. And no one can see us together, got it?" _

"_Deal," he was happy to be able to see them again, (mostly Hansel) maybe they could be friends, "What's your name?"_

"_Gretel." _

_Hansel jumped at the two and caught both of them in a tight hug. "Let's dance with Ghillie Dhu!" and he took both by the hand and took them to the tree Kester was previously stuck in. Gretel looked around, thankfully no one was there and the Woman was away on business anyway. Hansel took Kester's and Gretel's hands and they danced around the tree, or more like Kester and Gretel stumbled along while Hansel leapt and danced around. _

_It was an odd experience to say the least. But Kester had had more fun with these two in the past hour than in his entire life. Even Gretel seemed to enjoy herself, although she had yet to actually smile with them. The three would have danced all day around the tree if they had not heard the telltale hooves of the Woman's horses. _

_End Flashback_

The three became secret friends and could only play when the Woman was away. Kester often questioned the Woman's treatment of his precious friends –- all the "friends" he made were chosen for political reasons and none of them really liked each other anyway - but, like the rest of inhabitants of the manor, he was too afraid of her to ask.

Years passed and life passed in relative tranquility for the kingdom with nothing that helped change the misfortunes of these unlucky twins. Only after the 16th birthday of Gretel and Hansel did things begin to change.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~-**Gretel and Hansel-~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~**

"Gretel…Gretel…Gretel!"

Gretel opened her eyes to see her twin brother looming over her, smiling like he had when mother…She got herself off the bed, it would do no good to think of the past and she gently pushed Hansel out of the way.

"You've got many Orglies(1) on your head today," Hansel commented, as if he were describing the weather, and frowned "you should sleep some more, they don't like being squished, even if it is just a pillow."

Gretel sighed, "I'm fine," and walked across the room to take the little apron that hung on a battered little hook on the wall. If there was one thing good about their enslavement to that Woman, it was that they at least had their own room. It was small, dark, and dusty, but it was better than nothing. She and Hansel shared a bunk bed, Hans on top, Gretel on the bottom. There was small dresser, which held mainly small, seemingly insignificant items that served as precious memorabilia: a feather, a large maple leaf, a few wooden beads strung on thin wire, a worn-out doll, and a rusty kitchen knife. Above the dresser was a small window facing the Nadirean forest.

A dark place, evil things lurk there, and no one dares come close for fear of the malevolent spirits that reside within. Those who ventured too deep died, sometimes a corpse would appear, but the state of the body did little to improve the forest's reputation. The only path considered safe passes through the edges of the forest and it somehow never attracts the attention of beasts. If one is brave enough, one may take that path and actually cut off at a few leagues of journeying around the Nadirean Forest. All the same, very few take the old beaten road.

Gretel tied on her apron to her plain, green dress. She always tried to keep her clothes clean, since it was one of the few things she was allowed to own but it was still rather dirty and worn out. She took out some old silk ribbons that she was allowed to keep and tied her hair into twin braids. Hansel was in the middle of tying on his apron when he began staring out the window. Probably lost in one of those strange trances he would occasionally fall into. Gretel simply walked to Hansel and tied the apron on for him; she was used to this and knew no amount of yelling or hurting would pull him out of it.

She took his hand in hers, and began walking out into the hall. Today was a very special day. The king's sons, Prince Marius and Prince Brennan were passing through Adelaide and would be staying at the manor. Rumors say that they were chasing a witch that was found to be plaguing the city of Yule with terrible storms. She escaped custody and was presumed to be hiding in or near the city of Adelaide. _Maybe they'll go into Nadirean Forest._

She snorted. No one was stupid enough to let a royal enter that place. But she could always hope.

Gretel heard little of Prince Brennan, only that he was the child of the king's mistress, but she did know Prince Marius well enough as he had passed through Adelaide (which was now a bustling city due to the Woman's meddling) several times before. She held no love for him; he had taken away the kind overseer at the manor and killed her. The old woman had criticized the Prince's alcoholic tendencies and violent behavior. She was whipped in public and quickly died from the pain.

The kind old woman was worth a million of the disgusting whelp the masses called 'prince'

_May the bastard rot in hell, _she thought to herself. Not a single day passed that Gretel did not wish for the degenerate prince's death. The pain of losing such a kind woman was not lost on her, or on her fellow servants. Of course, no one was willing to defy the prince after seeing what happened. Hansel brushed a hand over her cheek.

"The Orglies are exploding all over your head. If you don't smash them you won't be able to see!" Hansel said all while swatting at the air around her head with a worried expression on his face.

"I'll be okay Hans, let's go to Alfred and see what we've got to do today."

"Not until the Orglies go away. You can't work if you've got Orglies all in your face."

Hansel continued to swat the air around her, his eyebrows furrowed in concentration. Gretel simply smiled, her brother was a strange one, she'd admit, but he always managed to bring a smile to her face. But they really needed to go, she and Hansel had managed to avoid whippings for 3 years now. She was not going to break that today.

Blodwen Manor was once a very cozy home to the twins. It was stately but homey at the same time. It still held its majestic charm, but the Woman's influence led to the manor becoming less comforting and more imposing in appearance. It lost the warm and cordial atmosphere that their mother always had. _How depressing. _Gretel decided to focus on getting to Albert, the head butler, and getting to work. She would fall back into depression if she kept thinking like that.

At least she had Kester to look forward to later. More specifically his books. Gretel and Hansel had basic reading lessons only to be quashed later on by the Woman. Thankfully they had Kester, who was willing to take out his textbooks for them so they could learn. He was still annoying, but thankfully his ego deflated a bit ever since the _incident__. _

Using the servants' quarters to get to the head butler's office, Gretel and Hansel quickly made their way to Albert. For some odd reason, the Woman did not want Gretel and Hansel to be seen by the general public. So they were forced to use the servant's halls and passages. Fellow servants were an exception and allowed to see the twins because they served for life, they seldom left Blodwen Manor.

Perhaps it was the shame of having such a horrible step-daughter and disgraceful step-son being made public. Who knows? Or more importantly, who cares?

The finally arrived at Alfred's office, the inside was always neat and tidy; it also accommodated a small bookshelf that sat behind his desk, though the books were mainly cookbooks and rulebooks. A small desk sat in the middle of the room, with a small oil lamp and what was probably Alfred's schedules and notes in a large heap on top of the desk.

"You're nearly late for breakfast preparations," Albert said, without looking up from his work. Alfred was an old man, nearing his sixties, and he already had a full head of gray hair. He had a very austere presence and his temper was something to be feared, but in all their years, Gretel and Hansel never had to endure anything but a mild scolding from the man. Perhaps because he pitied them? He was one of the few who knew of their relation to the mistress of the house. Nonetheless, Gretel didn't want the man too close. Kind or not, he was the head butler and that made him one of the Woman's minions. She made sure to stay on her toes; she must never let her guard down ever again…like last time…she would only get hurt if she was careless.

"There were Orglies hovering, I had to get rid of them" Hansel stated.

"Orglies are bad," Gretel continued with a grave nod.

Alfred stared for a moment, lost in thought, then continued. "You two are on kitchen duty. Be ready to set the tables and clean the dining hall with the rest. Expect more considering we are low on staff today. That is all."

With that, Gretel nodded and made to walk out when she saw Hansel walk towards Alfred.

"Please take this," Hansel said, slowly reaching into his pocket and placing two stale biscuits onto his desk. He then sped towards the door, dragging Gretel along with him.

Hansel always did this. Gretel tried to tell him to keep them for himself, but he simply refused to listen. So that Hansel would not be left any hungrier than they usually were, she took out her own biscuits and the two would each give a biscuit to Albert instead. Even though Albert always received much better rations, he accepted the biscuits with an air of approval and even seemed to enjoy eating them. It was strange. Maybe the man was just humoring Hansel.

Anyways, upon their arrival, the cooks immediately sent them to peeling the potatoes. The cooks were cooking enough food that could feed the entire city, but considering that two royals and the twenty soldiers accompanying them were arriving, there wasn't really a difference between the two. Gretel quickly fell into rhythm with the rest, but Hansel seemed to drift off more often than usual today, forcing Gretel to peel twice as fast in order to cover for him.

"Hans," she whispered, "Hans, wake up, we have to finish all of these before we can go outside."

But he seemed to be in one of those trances of his again. She sighed and took the knife away from him before he dropped it. She angled herself so that she covered most of Hansel from the cooks' view. Sometimes a few of the cooks would notice, but they never really bothered her or Hansel so long as Gretel peeled fast enough. Today, being particularly stressful, had to peel much faster than she usually did when she had to cover for Hansel.

Not like it became much of a problem for Gretel anyway. She could peel all of them herself if she really had to and still manage to finish faster than if there were three people working on them together.

Gretel had always been like that. When she and Hansel had been set to work as servants, they were usually given tasks that were meant for fully grown men, not two young children. She could move timber and plow fields as fast as any man. No, she could go faster. She was agile, scaling trees in seconds and outrunning even the fastest courier. Gretel also had extremely acute senses, hearing and seeing better and farther than anyone in the manor (besides the woman of course, she seemed to hear and know everything that was happening, regardless if she was there or not). Why she was blessed with such talent was a mystery to her. She would prefer to be horribly fragile just like her mother and have her family together again instead of this strength. But she wasn't one to look a gift horse in the mouth. She utilized that strength and did what she could to keep Hansel and her safe from the Woman.

So, peeling potatoes wasn't a problem for her. Gretel was only worried one of the cooks would scold Hansel for remaining idle and report it to the Woman. Hansel was the only precious family she had left. Her mother was dead and her father…after marrying the Woman, had simply disappeared, they hadn't seen him since his wedding day. So Gretel could only assume the worst had happened; that the man had somehow gotten into an 'accident', courtesy of the Woman.

"Gretel!" one of the cooks barked.

"Yes?" she didn't stand up immediately because Hansel still seemed to be in a daze.

"Go out to the well and fetch me a pail of water, HURRY!" the cook screeched and threw a large wooden bucket at her. Gretel caught it with ease, but hesitated. She couldn't leave Hansel all by himself…

"What are you waiting for girl?! GET TO WORK!" and she slapped poor Gretel across the face, roughly grabbing her by the shoulder and throwing her out of the kitchen. She looked back, thankful, that Hansel seemed to come back to his senses seeing that he suddenly turned to look at her. She would only be gone for a minute. What could possibly go wrong? _Better safe than sorry, _she told herself and she ran to the kitchen's well.

Unfortunately the pulley and the rope seemed to be in disrepair. It would take too long to fix it and the cooks needed the water NOW. Gretel massaged her forehead, feeling a headache coming along. She would have to go to the other well at the servants' quarters across the manor.

She could fix the pulley later but for now, she was probably going to have to sneak back and forth for water across the manor if the cooks needed more. Not only that, but if the princes came early, she would have to find a way to sneak past all of them without being seen. The Woman did not like them being seen by those outside the manor, and if she was seen by any of the princes or their company…she did not want to find out what would happen. She hefted the bucket over her shoulder and began walking to the kitchen to take a few more buckets and a cane. The more water she brought back, the less trips she would have to make and the less time she would have to spend away from Hansel. With everything she needed, she began to slowly jog across the manor to the servants' quarters.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~**Gretel and Hansel~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~**

"Cheer up cousin. Now you know to listen to your brain rather than your dick."

"I was NOT doing…that!" Brennan was blushing furiously. The witch was, he supposed, quite adorable for an 11-year-old, but he was **not** interested in her, or any other little girls for that matter.

"Awww…is the little princess angry?"

"Shove it," and Brennan turned away, brooding. Honestly, he had only wanted to interrogate the girl when one of the guards had gotten a little too excited. He hadn't believed the girl was a witch until she escaped. She just looked so _innocent_.

"Now, now, we'll be arriving in Adelaide soon. I fully expect you to keep your hands to yourself," Marius continued, still with that odd smile plastered on his face. He always smiled, which left most rather unnerved after being in his presence. The yellow, cat-like eyes and foxlike features did little to quell this feeling.

"As if you of all people should be telling me that," and he playfully shoved his cousin away.

Despite his cousin's eerie personality, he wasn't _that_ bad, as long as one didn't irritate him too much. But aside from a little breakfast incident, he and Marius got along relatively well.

Despite his cousin's nonchalance and attempt at cheering him up, he couldn't stop thinking about the girl. He couldn't believe at first, that such a little girl could possibly have caused all those storms. It just didn't sit well with him. The witches he had always seen before were your stereotypical witches. Foul, disgusting, pure evil, and so easy to hate, he wouldn't hesitate to put these things down like the demons they one looked like she was only 11-years-old, and to see such a young child meeting the same fate as the rest…it wasn't right.

And that wasn't the only thing that worried him.

They would be arriving at Lady Blodwen's manor in just a few hours. She initially seemed like just another courtier trying to claw her way up the ranks. But he knew the true face that hid behind the amiable facade. He shuddered, remembering that cold face and those hard blue eyes. She was different, still ambitious, but there was something terrifying hiding beneath that kind demeanor.

_Flashback_

_Brennan was walking aimlessly through the halls. He honestly didn't feel up to listening to his teacher's lectures when the weather was so beautiful today. His father wouldn't mind him missing a lesson or two. _

_He walked out into the garden, savoring the sweet smell of the summer roses growing nearby. He made his way to the center of the garden, the gazebo where his older brother would often be found at. To his surprise, he saw a woman instead, with beautiful black hair. She was such an elegant figure, her hair put up with many decorative pins, a shame she had her back towards him. _

_She seemed to be drinking tea with someone else, Lord Edwin. He scowled. A cowardly, worm of a man; Brennan was sure Edwin would sell his own daughters to save himself. He was secretary to High Councilman Rainer, all the councilman's dirty work was Edwin's work and the position only served to inflate his oversized ego. He snickered at the man's obvious attempt at flirting…the man couldn't woo even the most desperate woman. (His wife was simply a part of an arranged marriage so that didn't count.)_

"_Of course, of course milady, his lordship would be willing to meet with you only…" Lord Edwin drifted off, his amiable smile turned into a leer, "what would you do for me in return for granting such an audience?"_

"_I will grant you my silence of course," she returned, in a chilling voice, quite a turn from the sweet sound Brennan heard before._

"_Your silence?" Edwin laughed, then sneered at her, "Please milady, what do you have that I cannot be returned to you in full? I have more than enough information that can acquaint you with the king's guillotine." _

_The air suddenly felt five times colder, it felt as if there was an oppressive force pushing down on the earth. The lady leaned forward and whispered something in his ears._

_She leaned back, relaxing her shoulders and the tense atmosphere immediately lifted, but the change had left an unsettling mood. Lord Edwin took out a handkerchief and wiped his brow, he was extremely pale and it was obvious he was frightened by her words. _

"_Does this not end any debt I supposedly owed you Lord Edwin?" the woman asked her voice light-hearted and cheery._

"_Y-yes, Lady Blodwen…"_

'Blodwen…that up-and-coming family from Adelaide…' _Brennan thought to himself._

"_Now, those new shipments, I believe you have taken more than…" she stopped, and turned towards the spot where Brennan was hiding. Her soulless eyes searched the bushes and looked directly at him, sending shivers down the young man's spine. _

"_L-Lady Blodwen? Is there something wrong?" Edwin interrupted, casting nervous glances from the woman to the general area she was looking at._

"_Hmmmm…" and she finally turned away, "…only a rat."_

_Brennan made his way back to the main halls as quickly and quietly as possible. When he thought he was out of earshot, he ran back to his rooms and shut the door. Those eyes promised death. He really wished he hadn't chosen to ditch his tutor today._

_End Flashback_

He was hoping to never see her again. Unfortunately, the girl had chosen to run away tp here, of all places. The city was indeed beautiful, but his mind kept drifting back to the girl, knowing what would inevitably happen should another hunter find the girl first. He brooded over in his corner of the carriage, lost in thought. He hardly even noticed that the carriage had stopped and that Marius had left.

"Stuuuupid young maaaster, we're heeerrre!" He heard a loud voice call out, and he was pulled right off his horse, nearly falling face first.

When Brennan had reoriented himself, he looked to see the face of his bodyguard, Daria; a young woman with dark chestnut hair, warm hazel eyes and a smile that could rival his mother's. She, like Marius, seldom frowned, but her smiles were much warmer and she came off as a more lighthearted older sister than his cousin, who looked like a poisonous snake. And although she was a woman, Daria was a formidable adversary. She was the daughter of one of the lesser courtiers in Sybaris. She found swordplay interested her more than simple sewing and cooking and was eventually recognized by the king himself. At first, Brennan had been skeptical about having a woman as his bodyguard, but first-hand experience with her swordsmanship had changed his opinion of her and he quickly grew fond of her over the years.

"Stupid? I should have you flogged for such insolence!" he puffed out his chest and crossed his arms, the perfect image of the haughty prince.

"Is that so? I would certainly like to see you try!" and she grabbed the boy in a headlock, ruffling his bright red hair.

"Aghhhh…I yield, I yield! Mercy!" he laughed and Daria let him go, but not before pinching him on the cheek.

"You've grown up to be such handsome little bugger," she teased and grabbed his other cheek, examining his face "I bet you any girl would let you take them any day if you looked at them with those pretty green eyes of yours!"

He laughed and pushed her away, "Now, now, no time for the lady-folk. I'll have you know I am very busy being a famous witch-hunter! You should be grateful I spared the time to grace you with my presence on this fine day!"

"Of course my pretentious young master," and she bowed sardonically to him.

"Ahem," the two turned to see Marius with an old man, presumably the head butler, in tow. "Would you two be so kind as to stop with the theatrics and come inside to greet Lady Blodwen? You can continue after we have talked."

"Ahem..er..yes, of course," and Brennan straightened his cravat and smoothed out his coat, donning the usual mask of indifference he always wore when meeting with other nobles, "lead the way."

"This way, please, your highnesses," and the butler led them inside to Blodwen Manor.

The entrance hall was quite impressive. It had a tall, spacious ceiling like that of a cathedral, and on the left were large marble pillars, serving to frame the hallways that diverged from the entrance hall. Elegant crystal chandeliers hung above them, and a below was a dark tiled floor that led straight to what was presumed to be the dining hall. Inside was a long mahogany table, lined with matching chairs and various dishes already set out. The delicious smell nearly made Brennan's mouth water, but as such actions were unbefitting of a prince, he maintained his composure. The room accommodated large windows, letting in large amounts of light and provided a view of the beautiful garden and pavilion beyond it.

"Your company is to eat here," the head butler stated, "Lady Blodwen would prefer that your highnesses eat with her and her son in their private apartments."

"I'm afraid I can't leave my prince on his own sir," Daria said, her eyes narrowing at the butler. Brennan had told her about the strange conversation he stumbled upon with Lady Blodwen and she decided that the woman couldn't be trusted to be alone with the princes.

Now it was the butler's turn to narrow his eyes, "I assure you ma'am that the royal highnesses will not be harmed in any shape or form during their stay here at Blodwen manor."

"Oh? Considering how close the Nadirean forest is I seriously doubt that."

"Are you suggesting that Blodwen manor is incapable of protecting itself?"

"Alright, alright, no need to throw a fit," Marius said, interrupting the two's glaring contest, "stand down Daria, I'll make sure Brenny comes out safe and sound." As genuine as Marius sounded, his creepy smile did little to ease Daria's concerns.

"Daria," Brennan said coldly, "I can take care of myself. There is no need to coddle me." He knew Daria was only worried, and in fact, he would have welcomed her presence. But a bodyguard would only make him appear weak and give the impression that he couldn't handle things without someone there to protect him.

Daria scowled, "Very well. I will remain here with the rest. But at the first sign of trouble, I will not hesitate to rip apart this manor to find you." The last part was directed mainly towards the head butler, whose eyes turned frosty but inclined his head in acknowledgement.

Brennan knew she was annoyed, that she just wanted to protect him, but she should also know that her presence would only damage his reputation even more, and being the bastard child of the king was already demeaning as it is. He could protect himself, he was 16-years-old now for goodness' sake. Daria walked away to join the rest of the company, who were already gorging themselves on the fine food. She scoffed, _Animals._

Brennan and Marius followed the butler out of the main dining hall and into another hallway.

The three walked for some time through the many halls leading towards Lady Blodwen's private apartments. There were many magnificent portraits and statues they saw as they passed by and the private gardens were as beautiful as those at Brennan's mother's chateau.

Brennan lagged behind the rest, walking in the back of the rest of them. He was not looking forward to seeing the mistress of the house. And because of his moping, he was the only one that saw the girl running around the corner carrying several large buckets of water. He gaped, how could she carry so many at one time? She had a long cane resting on her shoulders and on each end hung two buckets of water. It looked heavy, but the girl didn't seem to care, carrying the load with relative ease. Upon closer inspection, he saw she was quite beautiful, and not so young; she looked like she was around his age thankfully. God only knows what would happen if Marius found him eyeing another 11-year-old girl. To his disappointment, the strange girl quickly rounded the corner and disappeared.

"What are you looking at cousin?" Brennan flinched, nearly jumping away from Marius and pushing him over. He had been a little too close for Brennan, leaning over his shoulder until their faces were nearly side-by-side. Marius smiled even wider at Brennan's obvious discomfort. "Well?"

"Just admiring the gardens," Brennan fibbed, Marius wouldn't let Brennan hear the end of it if he said that he was watching a girl. And if Marius told Daria about it…he shivered.

Marius didn't seem convinced, but he didn't bother questioning him about it.

"Come along then, the lady awaits!" and Marius put a hand over his shoulder and led him back towards the head butler, who was waiting for them patiently in front of the door to Lady Blodwen's apartments.

* * *

**Think it should continue? Think it should never see the light of day ever again?**

**Review please! **

**Oh and about Ghillie Dhu, he's basically a tree spirit...wiki it or something if you want to know more or just look it up.**

**Oh and Orglies are just something I made up. **

**And Gretel...imagine her carrying the buckets in a similar fashion to the soldiers in training in _Mulan,_ I don't know, I just found it a really amusing picture, with Gretel carrying bunch of heavy stuff like it's nothing and Brennan just kind of having a WTF moment. **


	2. Chapter 2: The Beginning of a Storm

**Disclaimer: I don't own Hansel and Gretel**

**But I _do_ own Gretel and Hansel **

**There's a difference. **

* * *

"_By the pricking of my thumbs, something wicked this way comes" (Act 4, Scene 1)_

Macbeth_, _William Shakespeare

Ch. 2: The Beginning of a Storm

Kester was sitting in the library, finally finishing another book and enduring the last lesson of the day. The tutors were still unbearably arrogant, but they were retiring and would soon be replaced. Hopefully his next teachers would be more competent than these buffoons the colleges deemed excellent scholars. He was tempted to keep on reading and skip the private luncheon his mother was planning to have with the traveling princes. It wasn't as if he was uninterested in meeting royalty, no he was curious as to how they lived, how they worked, especially considering the two were famous witch-hunters. He had just been hoping to spend the day with Hansel and Gretel on their 16th birthday.

He already had presents picked out for them, a yew sapling for Hansel and a botany book for Gretel. The two really seemed to love nature, especially Hansel, and Gretel loved to read whatever she got her hands on. He hoped they would like the gifts as he went through great pains to find these without arousing his mother's suspicion.

Kester sighed and got up from the plush armchair he had been reading in. The library was such a peaceful place and if it was not usually occupied by those insipid gremlin tutors he would come more often. The library was filled with many precious tomes that many professors would die for; each book was fascinating and horribly boring in its own right. After placing the book in its original position, Kester wandered around the library aimlessly. He had read a majority of the books already and the few he hadn't read were usually taken to his mother's private study.

Bored and unwilling to return to his room to get ready, he loitered in the library for a good while. At times, he would stop; picking a book at random, which he would quickly close after briefly scanning its contents. At one point he came across a rather dubious looking book that he had not seen before. It had a white cover with black bindings on it, the title, _Oberon's Compendium of the Invisible World. _Kester picked it up, curious, and briefly went through its contents. He found beautiful, intricate drawings inside, and beside each were pages describing a creature or scene from old fairy tales he used to hear when he was a child.

It was completely fascinating.

And complete rubbish, at the same time.

Demons and witches were of common occurrence here in this country, thus explaining the need for witch-hunters. They were found throughout the book, so there was little surprise there.

Some included old tales…like elves and dwarves, trolls and dragons, and other creatures of the like. They just didn't exist anymore. They belonged to the imagination of children and the fantasies of drunkards. It had been thousands of years since anyone had seen anything akin to these so-called 'magical creatures'. Their existence was disproven long ago by a majority of the intellectual community. Studies showed that many of these faeries proved to be delusions created by children and superstitions formed by paranoia and for lack of a better explanation for natural events and disasters.

But it was interesting nonetheless; it certainly explained every day traditions, like hanging charms outside the bedroom window. Kester had always been a skeptic when it concerned anything 'magical' aside from witches, whose existence was proven.

As he continued reading, he came across a passage about witches.

_Take heed that not all witches are of the same brood. There are three different classes of witches, each significantly different from the other and it is of utmost importance that one be able to distinguish between the three due to their varying strengths and weaknesses. _

_Third Class: Daemoniacus_

_These witches, unlike the other two, are found to be demonic and beast-like in nature and appearance. It is believed that these are people have contacted and merged with demons, thus explaining their vulgar appearance, but some have the ability to shape shift between the form of a human and a witch. As Daemoniacai are normally born from creating a pact, anyone, a man or a woman, can become a Daemoniacus which results in it being the most common of witches. Their primary purpose is to destroy, presumably due to the general nature of the pact the person makes. They are beings filled with malice and evil, willing to destroy everything in its path until rendered unable to do so. In which someone must either slay or at least incapacitate it. However, after being formed, a Daemoniacus obtains a hard, insect-like armor that makes it invulnerable to most attacks. The shell, however, is usually susceptible to holy fire and/or holy water. There are also, like all forms of armor, small chinks in the shell in which, should one have the courage and skill, find and use to one's advantage to slay the fiend. _

_Second Class: Albamentum_

_Albamentum are the weakest witches in terms of destructive power. They generally take on the appearance of a human but there are some accounts in which their appearances are similar to that of elves. It appears that Albamentum are strictly female. Some claim they have seen male Albamentum but said claims have yet to be confirmed. Often dubbed as 'white witches', they are found to be rather docile and specialize more in healing magic, usually providing aid to the injured, the sick, or the elderly. When threatened, Albamentum will attempt to protect itself through defensive techniques, because it is unable to wield any affective offensive attacks. It will defend itself by either creating magical surges that affect their environment to aid them (ex. Making storms, smoke, gusts of wind), or escape primarily by teleporting. It is with great urging that one not kill an Albamentum. Killing an innocent being such as the Albamentum normally ends with the murderer being followed by misfortune and quickly results in the prosecutor meeting a horrible and excruciatingly painful fate. _

_First Class: Omnipotenti_

_Omnipotenti, are as scarce as the Albamentum and are considered the most powerful class of witches. The Omnipotenti are found to be competent in both healing and destructive spells, a combination which makes them superior to the Albamentum and the Daemoniacus. Each Omnipotenti has a special set of powers aside from healing and general destruction spells that varies depending on the individual. Very little beyond this is known about the Omnipotenti, what information that is left is mere speculation and rumors. But what is certain is that the Omnipotenti, are ever-changing, they can be benevolent or malevolent or both, depending on their choice. And such freedom makes them, in a sense, more like humans than any other type of witch. _

Kester read on and on, so engrossed with the book that he didn't notice the grand carriage coming in through the front gate. It was only until he heard the voices coming from below that he turned to look out the window.

'_Oh god…,' _and he ran out of the library into his room. He wondered why none of the servants had bothered to remind him and silently cursed to himself for being so forgetful. He could keep his shirt on since it would be covered by his coat and vest anyway but he would have to change his shoes and trousers. They were much too plain for formal dining with their royal highnesses. His mother would be very…displeased to see that he was dressed inappropriately for the occasion and embarrassing her in front of the princes.

After haphazardly throwing on clothes he deemed appropriate, he ran to his mother's private apartments, sneaking in through the servants' halls to cut the trip. He began trying to clean up his disheveled appearance using the mirrors and reflections in the windows he passed by and noticed he was still carrying the book. Ah well, perhaps it would become a conversation starter.

His thoughts trailed back to Hansel and Gretel, wondering if they were caught up in the hectic preparations for the princes. Probably. Of all the days they chose to appear, it had to be on their birthday. He knew witch hunting was their duty but he couldn't help but resent them and the 'witch' for appearing at such an inconvenient time for him. He would do anything just to escape and meet up with Hansel and Gretel. Especially Gretel. Nowadays, for some odd reason, he would get butterflies in his stomach whenever he talked to her and she appeared in his thoughts more often than he would like.

As he rounded the corner, Kester came face-to-face with Albert. He yelped and jumped back, nearly tripping in the process. He saw that the two princes were a little farther behind and they seemed to be distracted by something. Thankfully, his yelp seemed to have been covered by the shorter of the two who yelled at the same time. He turned back to Albert, he seemed ready to scold him, but instead moved to the left so that Kester could go inside his mother's private dining room. He thanked Albert with a nod of his head and snuck inside before the princes could notice he was there.

He walked in and found himself in an elegantly furnished room. He had never been in his mother's private quarters, only her office, and those were visits her preferred not to remember. The room was on the second floor, and accommodated an excellent view of the manor garden with large windows spread out across the room. And facing the sun, there was no need for any lamps with all the natural light that poured in.

He heard a gentle cough. He paled, but managed to keep his composure and turned to his mother, who was sitting at the table in the middle of the room.

"You're nearly late," his mother stated, looking at him with cold eyes.

Kester gulped, "I apologize Mother, I was in the library and…"

"And next time you won't be," his mother interjected, "you are barred from the library for the rest of the princes' stay and until I see you are competent enough to remember your duties…" her eyes zeroed in on the book, "I will be taking that and your other reading materials aside from your study texts back."

She placed her hand out for the book and Kester grudgingly placed the book in it. He plopped down in his seat on his mother's right. He would try to keep his sulking to a minimum considering the company they would be keeping, but honestly, did she really have to do that? He was here wasn't he?

It was always like this. Lady Blodwen rarely associated with her son, he barely saw her at all, and she hardly ever spoke to him. If she did it was only to deal out punishments like this. Kester wondered what he had done to earn this kind of treatment, after the tree incident he made sure not to step out of line…aside from that one time when Gretel…anyways…

It always felt like his mother was always angry with him…no it felt as if she was disgusted by him. Every time they saw each other Kester could see that strange look in her eyes, the small frown that crossed her face and her refusal to look him straight in the eyes. She never looked him in the eye, it didn't make her appear weak to Kester but only emphasized the revulsion that he found in her face.

It always filled him with shame and made him feel…unclean. While Kester was not close to his mother, he still desired the usual acceptance and praise parents would usually give to their children. Seeing the other children be adored and loved by their parents made him horribly jealous. No matter how much he told himself that he didn't need a mother, no matter how many times he told himself that Hansel and Gretel were enough, no matter how many times...he still wished for it from the bottom of his heart. Was there something wrong with him that made his mother hate him so?

"Their highnesses, Prince Marius Vangilia and Prince Brennan Sibelius have arrived," and the doors opened to reveal the two princes, with Albert following behind at a respectful distance. After Albert entered, the two servants flanking the double doors left towards a door in the right corner of the room. Prince Marius came and sat on Kester's mother's left, with Prince Brennan sitting on the other prince's right. Albert stood behind his mother on her left, silently awaiting orders.

The table felt slightly empty considering it could hold 6 more people but that was probably just Kester feeling out of place with his mother and royalty sitting around him.

"It is an honor to have you here your majesties," his mother greeted, and she flashed that 'kind' smile towards them. To Kester, who had never seen his mother smile, fake or not, it looked like similar to a wolf baring its fangs.

"The honor is all ours Lady Blodwen," Prince Marius replied smoothly, "to prepare for us at such short notice is duly noted."

Prince Brennan said nothing, only nodding his head in agreement.

His mother raised her hand and servants came out from the door in the corner, bearing trays laden with fabulous dishes, more than enough to feed a family of 9. After laying out the food, the servants bowed and walked away, their heads bent down in humble servility.

Only one other maid stayed, Olivia, holding a bottle of wine and standing on his mother's right. She was trembling slightly, the poor girl was always so nervous and Kester wondered why she, of all people, was chosen to do this. Then again, most of the maids were either uncivilized creatures with less manners than a dog at the dinner table, or were sycophants willing to spread their legs if need be to improve their position.

Olivia was at least pretty, and the air around her seemed kinder and welcoming, a great contrast to the ingratiating and somewhat contemptuous air most maids would wear upon their faces. He liked her, but she was just so timid, that he found it frustrating to talk to her sometimes like all the servants, she was horribly obedient, but at least she wasn't a flatterer.

"If you don't mind me asking," There went his mother again, her voice was positively dripping with poisonous honey, "what exactly does this witch look like? Perhaps I can provide my own knights to aid in your search."

"That isn't necessary, you needn't trouble yourself with these sort of matters," Prince Marius dismissed, casually waving his hand, "I assure you, there is no need to sacrifice your knights. This witch isn't as strong as it once was in Yule. At most the witch will be apprehended in a week, and you'll finally be free of us."

"Oh? Well, my offer remains open and do take advantage of the manor's resources. We have a rather extensive library available, and the horses here are well-bred. If there is anything you need, anything at all, only ask and it shall be done."

"You might want to take back those promises by the end of the week Lady Blodwen. My dear cousin can be a handful during these hunts," at this, Prince Marius smirked at Prince Brennan, who only scowled in return. His mother laughed lightly at the remark, it sounded rather false to Kester. God, if this was what the royal court was like Kester was sure he would have gone insane. The honeyed smiles and the fake kindness was enough to make him feel sick.

He would much rather prefer to become one of the itinerant professors who wandered the country in search of knowledge, their freedom and easygoing life was something he admired.

"Oh, where are my manners? This is my son, Kester," his mother gestured towards him.

He turned to the prince, trying to sound as polite as possible "It's an honor to meet you your majesty," bowing his head towards the prince.

"It's a pleasure to meet you too," the prince replied, his voice somewhat amused, "How old are you?"

"I'm 16 your majesty."

"Ah, I see. Then you're the perfect playmate for my precious cousin here! He's such a reclusive child, I hope you two will be well acquainted with each other during our stay here," and he turned back to Kester's mother.

Prince Marius reminded him of her, his mother; both of them had that infuriating voice that utterly oozed false kindness. The only difference was that the prince's voice held a slightly mocking tone and his smile never wavered. He face was reminiscent of a fox, sharp and thin. He had white-blonde hair and golden eyes to match, and was overall, rather handsome. But that was only to be expected of a prince.

Prince Brennan on the other hand, seemed cold and indifferent, like Gretel, appearing to be very unsociable. He was shorter than his cousin, but Prince Marius was very tall to begin with, and he had fiery red hair with bright green eyes, he carried an air of silent dignity without coming off as snobbish like other nobles did. He, too, had a fair face that reminded Kester slightly of Hansel. He seemed to be completely uninterested in the conversation and focused solely on eating.

Both were wearing an odd combination of armor and traveling clothes, but it suited them nonetheless. They were each so elegant in their movements, even when they were just eating, which left Kester quite envious of them. He, as intelligent as he may be, was fairly clumsy and awkward. Being isolated from most of the general community and not being one to indulge in anything remotely athletic, left him little more than a lumbering brute, Kester's books could only take him so far. He was beginning to regret not listening during those short etiquette lessons, seeing the princes made him feel like a fish out of water.

He was sure his mother was thinking the same considering the subtle glances in his direction when she was talking to the prince. Oh well, the tutors were never very good at teaching him these things anyway.

He chose to remain silent throughout the whole affair. It felt like an eternity. All he did was sit and listen to the rather dull conversation between his mother and the prince. All they did was make idle chatter, concerning mainly every day affairs and private jests known only to those who were a part of the royal court. So he picked at his food until the affair ended.

Finally, the servants brought out small pastries for dessert. Kester could have wept with joy; he was almost free! It was all so dull, he could have been outside with the twins, playing around the old tree outside his room and eating the pastries Kester had smuggled out of the kitchen.

"Kester," his mother called, breaking him out of his daze, "would you be so kind as to be their highnesses' guide for today? Unfortunately I have some urgent business to take care of," she turned back to the princes, "I apologize for not being able to show you the manor myself."

"We take no offense Lady Blodwen, we did arrive unexpectedly, please do what you must," Prince Marius turned to look at Kester, that bemused smile still plastered upon his face. "Please take good care of us," and watched Kester, his smile somehow growing wider.

"I will certainly do my best," Kester said, trying to keep the annoyance out of his voice. _Damn it. _The pastries were going to go bad at this rate.

** Gretel and Hansel**

* * *

** Hansel and Gretel**

Hansel awoke and found himself in a familiar clearing in the forest. The area was enclosed by a circle of elder trees **(1).** Being autumn, the leaves were varying shades of orange and yellow and falling down slowly upon the forest floor. He was sitting on an ornate throne made entirely of tree roots that were decorated with oleander blossoms and monkshood **(2)**. Small sprites hovered in the air around him, sitting themselves on the blossoms growing on his seat. Some were bold enough to seat themselves in his hair.

They whispered things he couldn't understand. He tried many times before to listen to what they said, but they spoke in strange tongues. So he sat in the ornamental seat until he felt a strange shiver through the air. The earth shuddered and two fissures appeared in the ground in front of him. Roots began to rise from the cracks, slowly forming a chair that looked similar to his and a table, complete with a porcelain tea set that appeared out of nowhere.

Upon finally finishing their form, a great number of leaves fell from the trees and swirled around the chair opposite of him. A woman appeared in the opposite chair, Her skin was strangely veined and tattooed like the veins on leaves, and her eyes were a bright orange that reminded Hansel of the burning embers in the fireplace. She was wearing a fine dress made entirely of maple leaves, with chestnuts and branches and small berries decorating the fringes of her gown and forming a crown atop her head. She had long, auburn hair, which was also decorated with assorted flowers and buds. At the very roots, however, her hair was turning black, and the occasional lock of hair would shimmer between the colors of auburn and ebony. She was very beautiful, but not in the way one would find another girl to be.

Her beauty was like the beauty one would find in a forest, in looking out to admire nature. It was like looking upon a beautiful flower rather than a beautiful girl.

As soon as she arrived, the sprites moved away from his chair and swarmed towards the woman, cooing at her in their high chirping voices. Only one stayed; the quiet one with the pretty brown feathers attached to its dress. It seemed to enjoy pulling at his hair and sifting through it. Those odd chirps reminded him of the odd little nightingale that would sing at their window every morning.

The woman ignored Hansel for a little bit, paying more attention to the sprites crowding around her. Each was pulling and pushing each other for her attention, others were all crowding around her ear, whispering secret things. The movements were so quick, that they seemed only to be blurs of color, their multi-colored wings swirling in a never-ending vortex of color that it made Hansel a little dizzy just watching them. With a wave of her hand, the sprites all stood at attention and they quietly flew away, settling down on the flowers of her and Hansel's chairs.

The woman took the teapot and poured a cup of tea for both of them. After she took her cup, she leaned back in her chair, looking at Hansel, waiting for him to drink first. Hansel knew better than to drink it, but took the cup anyway. He pretended to take a small sip and the woman nodded her head in approval.

"Happy Birthday, Videnti **(3)**," the woman said, a small smile gracing her lips.

Hansel tried not to be angry with her; it wasn't very polite to snap at people, "Titania, Gretel is by herself now."

Her face took on an amused look. "Worried about your precious pearl are you? Unfortunately, you have been summoned for neither celebration nor idle chatter; I'm afraid there are more pressing concerns to be dealt with than just kitchen chores. You are in danger."

"One of the dogs at home is named Danger. And for a good reason, I think he's gone quite mad. He's always roaming about our shed, and he claws at the door and howls. I doubt we could be more acquainted with Danger."

"This is incomparable to the ordinary threats that come to you each day. The tempest draws near. Whether it will turn in your favor or not, it will surely bring great suffering all the same."

"Misfortune is the makeup of reality. She likes to paint her face with it every day. What makes it so different? Does it come with death? That is an ordinary accompaniment. Does it come with despair? Another regular paint. Please enlighten me! What is the difference?!"

At this, Titania's expression became cold. Normally, Hansel was a very calm person, often taking these unexpected excursions all in stride but he was very restless and the Orglies were slowly filling up his vision. Today, she took him while he was working again and he could hear the resounding slap in the real world. He didn't feel any of the pain that would usually echo through so it was obvious that Gretel had been hit. He wanted to protect his sister, not the other way around. He wasn't usually there to protect her and he wanted to be. He wasn't strong, or fast or smart, but he wanted to protect her, just like he promised her at _that_ time.

Titania narrowed her eyes, her voice now sharp and harsh, "Calamity approaches and it will destroy your pearl and all those whom you've come to love. It is destructive and indiscriminately cruel. It does not suffer from pity or guilt; it will obliterate all in its path and raze the ground until none are left to tell the tale. Have patience, lest you wish to meet the storm at its center and be swept away!"

Hansel stayed quiet, and after he seemed appropriately contrite did the fairy queen continue, albeit in a much gentler voice. "Lend me your ears for but a moment and I will return you to your precious pearl." And she plucked an elder branch from her seat, which immediately grew white, sylphlike heather blossoms **(4)** and passed it to Hansel.

"I cannot stop it nor speak of it clearly. Little left is known of the imminent peril and it is forbidden to directly interfere with the realm of mortals. But know that the storm comes and that the winds of change accompany it. Follow it and you may find freedom from the beldam that keeps you," She gestured to the branch in his hands, "Do what you will with the spell but keep it close, it will be the difference between life and death."

Hansel fiddled with the branch in his hands, fingering the precious little flowers. "To be free? Can weeds really be plucked with storms?"

Titania opened her mouth to reply but instead put down her cup and turned to look away at the woods around them. Hansel followed her gaze and saw a black figure standing in the distance. There was something about it that made him shiver. He turned away; it was frightening, he wished he was with Gretel, where it was relatively safe.

Upon turning away, he saw more figures in the wood, they were surrounded. They came closer, and he saw that they were unnaturally tall and whispered strange things. It did not sound like the happy chatter of sprites, but sounded like evil things, like the Woman.

"Prepare yourself."

Titania disappeared in a flurry of leaves and the chairs unmade themselves, forcing Hansel to stand up. The sprites were in panicking. They tugged at his clothes, pointing in various directions. The black figures were getting closer and Hansel saw some familiar faces, but most were alien to him and each was more terrifying than the next. He started breathing faster; it felt as if the air was being poisoned by the creatures' stench.

Things began to get blurry and the Orglies appeared in and out of his vision. The ground began to shake and several cracks appeared in the ground. Hansel felt so nauseous he felt as if he would throw up. Just when he thought the beasts were upon him, a large fissure opened below him and he fell into darkness.

.

.

.

Hansel jumped and found himself in the kitchen. He looked for the paring knife he was holding and found it on a towel on the ground. He turned just in time to see Gretel being pushed out the door. Her face making a worried expression, a far cry from the cold mask she usually wore. He was about to wave to her, to show that he was ok, but the cooks slammed the door shut.

He hoped that Gretel wasn't in pain.

"What the hell are you doing?!" a loud voice forced Hansel out of his thoughts and he looked up to see the cook glaring down at him. Maisy was always grumpy, she acted like a cantankerous old man though she was in her early thirties and she was already growing gray hair. Today was she was particularly ornery. "GET BACK TO WORK YOU LAZY, GOOD-FOR-NOTH-"

"Will ya cut it already wit the chatter Maisy? Think the boy's had 'nuff," said a man around his forties, he had a kind face and was very gentle with others, aside from Maisy that is. Unlike Maisy, Gordon was a bit more level-headed and carefree as opposed to the boiling ball of stress that was Maisy. The two got along as well as oil and water. Hansel found he liked Gordon much better than Maisy and listening to him talk was interesting, considering the accent was uncommon here.

"If I don't whip any of you idiots into shape then we'll get NOTHING done! Honestly! If I wasn't here-"

"If ya weren't here, we'd all have bin dun all the same, 'cept it'd be nice and quiet witout your naggin' and yellin'. Git to work before Albert gets here yea, ya old hag?"

"Why you-"

And the chefs continued to bicker for quite some time before Albert broke them up. Arguments between these two were commonplace in the kitchen. It was even a part of the bell system in the servants' quarters, so that when the bickering began, Albert could step in to watch them and ensure the general peace. Before the bell system was installed, the two would resort to food fights even, inciting the horrible wrath of the head butler.

After finally being forgotten by the two, Hansel quietly went back to work. He peeled and peeled and his fingers were slowly getting sore and he had given himself a small cut after the blade slipped. Thankfully, he did not bleed over the potatoes. Both chefs would skin him alive if he ruined them with his blood. The two chefs were now furiously cooking, moving quickly throughout the kitchen as if trying to outdo each other by seeing who could cook the fastest. Hansel was going along quite slowly, he was never as fast as Gretel and it bruised his pride to make his sister do all the work.

He was the older one after all. No matter how much they may argue about it, he was older by a few minutes and that made all the difference to him. Hansel was released from the task after he had peeled enough and was set to washing the dishes and trays for the occasion. Hansel wondered where Gretel was. Surely it couldn't take that long to get water, could it?

** Gretel and Hansel**

* * *

** Hansel and Gretel**

Gretel eventually returned, carrying several buckets of water. Gordon patted her on the back, and Maisy only sniffed, muttering how she could have carried more. When Maisy turned back to her cooking, Gretel saw Gordon make an obscene gesture towards her. He turned to her and passed her a loaf of bread which she took and placed in the folds of her apron.

Gordon was an extremely friendly man, especially to women and children. He was well-liked because of his kind demeanor. Gretel found him absolutely repulsive. She would take the tokens of "kindnesses" but only the small ones in which she could return the favor.

Gordon was a dangerous man. He was not picky on who would be the object of his affections. There was some old gossip about a scandal way back about him being caught in a rather compromising position with a young boy at his family's farm. Of course, the matter was quieted down and dismissed as fantasy considering the only witness was a crazy woman obsessed with cats.

The way he looked at others unnerved her, and these rumors were accompanied by others, vague and outlandish as they were, Gretel decided to exercise caution. While they may be in the Woman's house, Gretel could not trust that they would be safe from the carnal desires of others. Hansel had grown up to be a striking young man; she would not allow Gordon or others of his brood to come close. She decided she would keep the paring knife just in case. They were cheap and often misplaced. No one would notice that one or two were missing.

"What are you standing around for? GET TO WORK!" Maisy screeched and Gretel walked towards Hansel, who was now washing the vegetables. But before she could reach him, Gordon took her shoulder and steered her towards the hens. They were, of course, dead, their throats slit and their blood already drained into a bucket.

"Now lassie, jus' skin an' clean these here chickens and yur free to go," he smiled reassuringly at her and gave her a knife, "if ya finish it nice, I think we can le' go of yur brother here too." He turned away to go to his station, but not before gently stroking her hair, admiring the smooth gossamer strands.

_Disgusting wretch. You shouldn't have given me the knife. You might find it next embedded in your throat you filthy dog. _And Gretel, for the next hour, thought of the ways in which she may _dispose_ of the perverted man without finding herself at the gallows. Unfortunately, she could think of no possible way. So she settled for plucking the hens' feathers as roughly as she could until more blood drew from the poor animals.

Honestly, they were going through so much food they would have to restock quite soon. They might as well have been cooking for all of Adelaide. And then there were dinner preparations too, Gretel couldn't wait for these soldiers to leave. One would have assumed they were men deprived of food for weeks at the rate they were eating.

Upon finishing the hens, she picked them up and dropped them at Maisy's station.

"I'm done here. I'm going to Albert," Gretel told her dismissively and began walking towards Hansel.

"What the hell? Where are your damn manners you insolent little-"

"Calm yurself Maisy, there ain't nothin' left for them here to do anyways. No point in lettin' 'em bother the rest o' us," and Gordon gestured for Gretel to take Hansel and to go.

"Now wait just a second! You think that you can just leave whenever you feel like it?!" she turned to glare at Gordon, "And you! Don't even think for a second that you're the one in charge here. The reason there are uppity little brats like her are because of slipshod bums like you!"

"And the reason why ev'ryone runs the other way when ya come is 'cuz of yur constant screechin'! Lay off will ya?!"

"NO!" and she turned to Gretel and Hansel, "gather the fruits in the garden and bring more eggs from the henhouse, the soldiers will need more food for dinner and I am not willing to disappoint the lady today. You can report to Albert afterwards, but if I get any more cheek from either of you, you'll be cleaning out the stables and the kitchen for the rest of the day."

Before Gretel could reply, Hansel and covered her mouth and spoke for her, "Okay, but if the brownies are there too then there won't be anything to bring back."

Maisy rolled her eyes, "Whatever. Go and be quick about it!"

And with that, Hansel dragged Gretel out the door before she could say anything back.

Gretel respected Maisy for opposing Gordon at every turn, but that didn't mean she liked her. She was very…unpleasant, for lack of a better word. The lady would choose to give Gretel the most tiring tasks, such as preparing the pigs before mealtimes. So Gretel chose to spite her every chance she got. Maisy was one of the people Gretel could disobey, resist, and insult without ever having to face the repercussions.

Maisy never reported Gretel for her insolence. Maisy's pride probably wouldn't allow the Woman to know that her authority was being usurped. Gretel sometimes wondered what Maisy thought of her, she did allow _that_ incident to slide and she never knew why. Maisy was a very strange person in Gretel's eyes.

Ah well, at least she was letting them go after this. The vegetable garden was adjacent to the Woman's personal one but they were separated by a gate to keep it out of view anyway. No idiot would climb the fence or look over it and everyone was busy with the princes already here. They were finally allowed some free time for once. Besides, Maisy never said they had to pick up the vegetables and eggs right away. They could afford to dawdle a little, it was their birthday after all.

** Gretel and Hansel**

* * *

** Hansel and Gretel**

"C'mon sweetheart, just one little kiss is all I'm asking!"

"How about you kiss my fist then? And then afterwards you can lick my boots."

"Awww, you're always so shy! How about we go somewhere more private? Then we can-"

Daria smashed her fist into his face, throwing him off of his chair and onto the floor. He landed in such a comical position, his face planted on the floor with his behind sticking up in the air; that she and the other men broke out into raucous laughter.

"Ya shouldn't have dun that laddie!" said one of the older soldiers

"The o-old pervert h-had it coming!" guffawed another, barely able to get the words out between laughs.

Daria turned back to the table, taking a deep drink out of her cup. The meal should have ended already, but the men decided to break into the wine they brought along from Yule. Most of the maids were too scared to come in after the men began sharpening their swords and when one of the drunkards began groping one of them. But there were some girls who decided to have a little 'fun' and were with some of the soldiers in the darker corners of the room.

She wished she was with Brennan. She didn't doubt his story about Lady Blodwen and didn't like the idea of leaving him with her for an hour. Nor did she appreciate him dumping her with these drunken idiots. But since the chefs had long finished cooking, the princes should be done with their meal too. Maybe she could find him. Maybe.

But whether she could find him or not, Daria decided she couldn't stand to stay any longer with these fools. She downed the last of her drink and left. When she opened the door to leave, she found herself face-to-face with the head butler.

Tch. Arrogant old man. She sniffed and stalked out the door, feeling the butler's glare drill holes in the back of her head. While she was technically a guest and shouldn't be treated as such, the man was also the proxy host because the mistress was not there. Damn old man, so sure of the safety of the manor just like all those other arrogant nobles who were so confident in the lax security of their homes. And there was something about the butler that rubbed her the wrong way. She thought of herself as a rather patient person, she knew better than to snap at people like that, no matter how cranky or annoyed she was.

But the air around him made her feel…angry? No. Suspicious. It reminded her of the aura that normally surrounds a witch. She had no proof that he was witch besides a gut feeling and Daria was little bit more professional than that.

She needed some air, someplace to clear her head. She wandered around the manor, trying to find the manor gardens she saw while being led inside. She tried to ask one of the servants to help her but they all their directions were rather vague. It didn't help that Daria didn't have a very good sense of direction. In the end, she found herself quite lost. The mansion was as bad as the royal palace. It wasn't as large, but the halls here all looked similar. Her mother always said she would have to tattoo a map on Daria's hand so she wouldn't get lost in their own home.

She rather missed them, but she never regretted her decision of leaving to join the military. She loved being free, being able to see the world. And she loved Brennan like the little brother she never had. So no, she did not regret it, but she did feel a twinge of homesickness every now and then. These feelings were easily quashed.

She opened another nondescript door on her right and found herself in a hall that looked different from the rest. It looked less formal and simple as opposed to the marble columns, tiled floors, and flowers and paintings lining the walls. It had an old rug which looked clean but worn out from age. There were many more doors down the hall, all of them closed. She wandered a little further and found small plaques on the fronts saying things like: Main Hall, Dining Room, Kitchen…and Gardens!

_Finally_, she thought and opened the door. She was in an orchard filled with apples and oranges and other precious fruits. She could see a small shed in the corner, the door slightly ajar, and saw inside were various gardening tools.

_The manor's orchards…_and Daria realized she had probably walked through the servants' quarters, considering the shed was not something any extinguished guest at the manor should want to see and the halls were much less decorated than the main corridors. Daria wasn't up for turning back to get herself lost again, so she settled for wandering through the orchard, picking an apple along the way. She probably shouldn't be in the orchard, but she'd make sure she wasn't caught. Besides, the fruits' scents mixed in perfect harmony. Flowers' scents tended to clash in such a way that she found unpleasant.

And the servants wouldn't mind missing an apple or orange here and there.

It felt so nice to be out in the open again. The air out in the orchard was refreshing and clean, unlike the befuddling smells of alcohol in the dining hall. As she walked, she heard voices just on the other side of the wall of orange trees. She stiffened, and stealthily climbed the tree. It wouldn't do to be caught here, it'd be rather embarrassing to explain that she had intruded upon the servants' quarters then snuck into the manor's orchards. They were places normally off-limits to guests in most households. She looked down to see two children sitting underneath, pulling out blades of grass and tying them into strange knots.

"You have to turn it this way and that, like loopy in and loopy out. Do you see?"

"…"

"No, no, no, loop up and in and over and out and through, understand?"

The girl sighed, "No, I don't understand, be more specific."

"In and out like so." the boy twisted the blades with practiced hands into a decorative knot, "so remember, the trick is to loop it through and let it push itself and…You're done."

The girl only sighed again and put down her work. "This isn't really something for me Hans, you know that."

"Poppycock, you just need practice. Now, put it through…"

And the boy, 'Hans', continued to explain in a dreamy voice to the girl how to make the knots. Daria would have laughed at the silly explanations if it would not give her away. The boy and girl, obviously twins by the similarities between the two, were completely engrossed in making those odd grass knots that they didn't notice Daria at all. They seemed to be around Brennan's age, and were actually quite a stunning pair. They both had beautiful blonde hair and such delicate features and each was gifted with a pair of strange, yet striking, violet eyes.

Daria couldn't help but fantasize Brennan asking to court the girl. She didn't see why he couldn't be with a servant, considering who his mother was. Maybe she'd introduce them to each other. It was about time Brennan searched for a lady now that he was such a handsome young bachelor. It would certainly be fun for her to play matchmaker.

Just as she was thinking this, the girl seemed to have had enough and she threw down her work in frustration. At the same time, Daria felt a snap on the branch she was sitting in. _Oops_. She pushed herself from the branch and flipped backward onto another branch behind her. Unfortunately, the sound had attracted the attention of the children.

The girl's eyes zeroed in on Daria. She did not look happy to find that Daria had been spying. Daria smiled sheepishly, rubbing the back of her head in slight embarrassment, "Ahaha…hi! These apple trees really are something, huh?"

The girl said nothing and proceeded to walk away, picking up two baskets that were sitting in the bushes. She bowed stiffly in Daria's direction and grabbed her brother's hand, dragging him away.

"Ah, wait!"

The girl stopped. She turned to look at Daria. "Sorry, but I'm kind of lost. Mind showing me out of here?" and she clasped her hands together and pulled out her best puppy-dog look. The boy seemed to pity her, and turned to his sister, putting on a similar pleading expression. Just when Daria thought it was all in vain and the girl would leave, she sighed and nodded to the boy.

He came up to her, "The gardens are this way. Follow me."

She shot straight up and hugged the boy, "Thank you! You're a lifesaver! Ahhhh, I've been lost ever since I got in here!"

"Er…you're welcome…" barely able to talk with the bear-hug Daria was keeping him in.

She finally let him go, "I'm Daria. And you are?"

"Hansel," and he gestured towards the girl who had her arms crossed against her chest, looking somewhat irritated (her face made it hard to tell what she was feeling half the time), "And this is my sister, Gretel."

"…hmph…" Gretel didn't seem like much of a talker.

"Well! Nice to meet you! Mind showing me how you were doing those grass knots too?"

Hansel's face brightened and he pulled out an unfinished knot which, upon closer inspection, seemed to be a braid that formed a bracelet of some sort. He began speaking as they walked along on how to make them. She didn't really get a single word of the explanation, but pretended she did. She would occasionally look over her shoulder to see Gretel trailing behind them, her face devoid of emotion. She seemed content to follow them closely from behind, her eyes focused mainly on Daria.

"Hey, wanna come up here?" Gretel didn't reply. Daria lagged behind a little, Hansel didn't notice, still talking about the knots and eventually going on a tangent and speaking about how sprites really liked grass bracelets. Daria whispered conspiratorially, "I bet we can figure out how to do these if we work together. What do you say?"

Gretel rolled her eyes, and walked up to Hansel. Well. How rude. But that was how Brennan was when he first met her. Persistence was key in befriending these types of people. Gretel really was such a cold person, but she seemed lonely at the same time…so Daria decided she would do her best.

She caught up to Hansel and Gretel. Hansel seemed to have realized that Daria had lagged behind and stopped for her. Gretel didn't look back and continued walking. When she got to Hansel, he began telling her about the different spirits and faeries that lingered in the house and the garden. She listened with great patience. She would occasionally call out to Gretel to slow down and walk with them, but the girl just kept going away, deaf to Daria's calls.

"It seems this is where we must part, Miss Daria."

Daria stopped and looked at the black gate in front of them. It was beautifully decorated, wreathed in flowers and leaves. There was something very foreboding about it, it had a hostile air around it and seemed almost eerie as opposed to the warmth in the orchard.

"Ah…a shame this meeting has to end so soon," and she knelt down towards Hansel, took his hand and kissed it. "Until we meet again, my dear prince!" Hansel only nodded solemnly. He didn't seem surprised in the slightest at the fact that Daria had done this, strangely enough. It even seemed like he expected it.

Daria then turned to Gretel, who backed away, as if expecting to get a kiss too. Instead, Daria unsheathed her sword and passed it on to Gretel, hilt first. The girl took it, admiring the weapon with a reverent look in her eyes. Daria knelt in front of her, "And will you do the honor of knighting me, my dear princess? As a parting gift for one such as myself?"

Gretel stared at her blankly for a minute. Daria worried she would still be rejected again but Gretel took up the sword and touched the tip to both of her shoulders. The mere gesture made Daria giddy with happiness. Compliance eventually leads to friendship, right? She really didn't want to leave them alone now that she had to leave, but this would at least be something to remember. Besides, role play was fun.

There was just something about Gretel and Hansel that made them special. Daria had a strange feeling, it was like when she was with Brennan. Protectiveness. She felt like she needed to protect them, though she didn't really know why. Probably one of those, womanly instincts her mother would always talk about. But Daria knew that she should follow these gut feelings, they had always proven true and helped save her and Brennan on numerous occasions.

So she decided to follow her instincts and keep an eye on these two, whether they wanted her there or not.

"Let's go Hansel."

The words broke her out of her thoughts and she saw her sword on the ground and watched as Gretel and Hansel walked away. Hansel turned back to her and waved goodbye. Gretel continued walking and if anything, began increasing her pace.

Daria found she enjoyed their company, albeit mainly Hansel's because Gretel was a little bit of a sour puss. It reminded her of those sweet old days where Brennan was just a little sprout, a child. Now he was all grown up, and it made her feel strangely lonely. He needed her less now, he was an adult and eventually, he would no longer need her. The instinct to protect these two children made her feel needed, more than Brennan needed her. Brennan was now sixteen, an official man, and he was growing stronger every day. She could cling to Brennan all she wanted, but eventually she would be dismissed when she was no longer necessary. And then they would be right…

She slapped her cheeks a couple of times. Now was not the time to worry about such things. Brennan would not leave her, and the king was a good man, he would not be so cruel as to throw her away so carelessly. After all, he did recognize her talent and trusted her to care for Brennan. This wasn't like her at all. To have such silly worries, Brennan would laugh at her.

She took a deep, calming breath and stepped through the gate. It was absolutely stunning. The gardens were magnificent, filled with flowers of every kind and color, begonias and lilies and hydrangea and rhododendron and the like. But the gardens were stony, the atmosphere was formal and remote. In the orchard, Daria could feel the tenderness that went into the plants and the memories hidden inside. Here, it was devoid of any warmth and was strictly for formal gatherings in which only venomous words and veiled threats were exchanged.

Daria decided she would rather go back inside with all those idiots after all.

* * *

**Gretel and Hansel**

**Author's Notes:**

**The meaning of plants used (definitions vary on looking at different cultures and sitesthatyoulookthemupon) and other stuff:**

**(1) Elder tree – birth and death, fairy realm**

**(2) Oleander – Beware**

**Mookshood (a.k.a. Aconite/Wolfsbane/Devil's Helmet etc. etc.) – Misanthropy or Beware**

**(3) White heather – protection**

**I hate dialogue. Never was good at it, but I'm hoping it works for now. Reviews are appreciated, but constructive criticism only please!**


End file.
